Snowy Birthday to me!

Oh my gosh, I'm 34!! When did that happen?

Almost my whole life I was a summer baby and was used to having my birthday around the pool or on camping holidays with my parents. However, since I moved to the UK I've had to get used to wrapping up warm on my birthday. This year even more so as we are completely snowed in! It's the first time I've ever had snow ON my birthday. It's odd, weird and very very strange. You would think that I would be used to it after living in the UK for the past 14 years, however it still seems slightly wrong.

In some ways its great as my hubby has decided to stay home due to all the trains being cancelled, but in others it's not so good. All my birthday cards and presents that have been sent by family and friends are all stuck at the Post Office because the Postie hasn't been able to deliver in quite a few days now!

Anyway, this is my car today.... despite the fact that it got cleared of snow yesterday!!

Now I'm wondering whether I should try to clear the car again and attempt to go out and do something special for the day or whether I would be best just snuggling down with a duvet and a cup of hot chocolate for the day. Any ideas??

I shall let you know what we decided in my next post! Thanks for dropping by!

Anthea

PS. Can you tell that my writing skills are a little rusty? It's been ages since I last did any sort of post and I'm feeling a little out of practice! 

Welcome!

Welcome to my new blog! If you've come over from my old Creating Space blog then please leave me a comment. It would be great to know that you're here!

I will be posting a catch up post next week sometime so keep checking back! Thanks for dropping by!!

WW3 has started!

Having finished with breastfeeding in August last year I had been looking at myself again and thinking that my weight was definitely spiralling out of control. Ok, so I'd had to quit my last attempt at Weight Watchers due to falling pregnant. However, since then I'd gained over a stone again - all in the name of needing to eat more due to breastfeeding. Hmmmmm..... not good! Anyway, I dithered and swithered and finally persuaded myself it wasn't worth starting a new diet just before Christmas. Ha! After Christmas I got on the scale only to find I'd gained another stone during the festive period. Right. This was getting ridiculous and had to stop!! So mid-January I finally dragged myself off to a Weight Watchers meeting and took that first horrendously embarrassing step onto the scales of doom. The result was a whopping 18 stone 12.5 pounds! 

So I had these two pictures taken to remind me how far I had let my weight go. And I'm planning on taking a photo at fairly regular intervals to show my progress during this journey. I have an enormous amount to lose to get to my final goal weight. However, I know I can do it this time! In fact, I've already lost a fair bit... but I shall post about that another day!  

The future of Blogging

So I'm seriously considering my position on blogging. Time is short and there's so much other stuff going on at the moment that I haven't actually been able to sit down and blog for ages! Is it worth keeping going or do I pack it all in? What do YOU think?

Where does the time go?

My goodness, how time does fly! Today is the 10th of the month, which means that it is Little Miss' 'month day'... and today she is 17 months old! Where did that time go? It seems to have gone so quickly and suddenly she is doing new stuff and trying new things. I can't keep up!  She's walking properly now - trying to run even! She's finally cut her third tooth, ages after her peers have but at least it's there now. I'm hoping that the fourth one isn't too far away! Talking is progressing well too; she has a few words that are quite distinct and loads of words where the general sound is present but not properly formed yet. Signing is still popular and she seems to be learning or making up her own signs almost on a daily basis! She has started dancing to music now; well, waggling her bum really but that's as close to dancing as a toddler gets! She loves singing and has learned the tune and rhythm to loads of nursery rhymes. The words aren't quite there yet but in some cases (particularly 'Twinkle Twinkle') she is forming the sounds quite well. All good and positive things... however, there is a downside too. 

The beginnings of the terrible two's have struck as well. It's as if someone flicked a switch last weekend - and suddenly the tantrums, the head-shaking and saying "NO!", the running away from Mum & Dad when called and the fighting over toys - has all started! Except now we have herself joining in too as usually the fighting over toys is because Little Miss has something herself wants to play with. Suddenly herself has turned into a Little Madam as she realises that her sister can not only get around much faster, but as she is standing up too she can now reach the toys that had previously been out of reach! And so, trouble ensues! Somehow though, over the next 18 years I'm hoping that they will learn to put up with each other, but right now it's not happening!

My baby is growing so fast, and I'm having to learn to keep a camera handy at all times just incase I miss that vital moment that marks another step forward. Unfortunately it means that I'm snowed under with lovely photo's and not enough time to scrap them all! 

January Craft Update

I'm amazed! I have actually managed to get some scrapping and cardmaking done this past month. Wonders will never cease! There are a few things which I didn't get any photo's of; the last CJ that I did, for example. I'm working on another one at the moment, but will probably forget to take a photo again. I usually do, simply because I'm usually in a rush to get it to the Post Office. It's only after I have posted it off that I remember - by which time it's too late! The other thing I don't have any photo's for yet, is my weight loss journal that I'm just finishing off at the moment. Once it's done I shall take some piccies for you to look at.

Until then, you will have to make do with pictures of a few cards and one LO that I did this month. It's not much of an output, but it's more than I've done in quite a long time!

I made these three cards all at the same time. One for my friend's birthday and her hubby's birthday (they're only a few days apart) and then also one for my SIL's hubby who is around the same time. 

Then I also made one for my FIL's birthday which is in early February. He's a massive Beatles fan (as he went to uni in Liverpool when the Beatles were still gigging there) - and as he's turning 64 hubby commissioned me to do a card based on the song "When I'm 64" from the Yellow Submarine album. The inside of the card has the words of the song printed inside. Hubby was pleased with the results!

I somehow managed to find a few days where my Mojo returned for a bit of scrapping too, so I did this scraplifted LO. It was based on a LO that has been in my UKS favourites folder for ages! It worked really well and was lovely to do a LO about my baby girl growing up! Unfortunately I can't remember who did the original - so if you know please give me a shout so I can credit her!!

Anyway, I hope everyone out there is having a fabulously crafty time! I'm going to go finish off my weight loss journal so that I can update you all on that a bit later!

December Catch Up : Advent Calendar

 From this... 

To this...

Its only taken me two years to complete, but I finally managed to finish this advent calendar which I gave to my Sister-in-Law and her family just before the Advent season. I have another one waiting to be done for our family. Hopefully it won't be another two years before we get to use ours!